Author: staff
Sisters Ariela and Alice had already been using Portugal’s bottle return scheme to earn money but since June they have upped the ante: now, instead of just returning their own bottles, they are asking their neighbours’ for their empty plastic bottles and making money off those too. Since April this year, when the Volta scheme launched, plastic bottles in Portugal have a €0.10 deposit included in the cost. If you return the empty bottle to a supermarket with a Volta machine, you’re given a receipt which can be exchanged for discounts or cash. Ariela and Alice have big plans for…
European lawmaker Jana Nagyová is guilty of EU subsidy fraud in a €2 million case related to Agrofert, the agriculture conglomerate linked to Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Prague’s High Court confirmed Monday in an appeal ruling. The court sentenced Nagyová, a Patriots for Europe MEP and a former adviser to Babiš, to a suspended three-year prison term, with a five-year probation period, and a fine of about €20,000 for subsidy fraud and damaging the financial interests of the EU. The decision upheld a lower court ruling from May. Nagyová has repeatedly denied the charges against her and will appeal…
By Etienne Paponaud & euronews Published on 31/08/2026 – 20:55 GMT+2 This week, 3,000 young people are starting France’s new national service programme, a voluntary military scheme that replaces the country’s now-scrapped Universal National Service. The volunteers have signed up for a 10-month stint, where they will learn discipline, drill, military songs and weapons handling. They will begin their service with five weeks of basic military training before joining a unit in the army, air force or navy. As well as receiving accommodation, food and clothing, participants will be paid €800 per month. Members of this first cohort were selected based on their…
Heavy rain triggered a major flash flood around Phantom Ranch and Bright Angel Canyon in Grand Canyon National Park on 29 August, sending water and debris into the Colorado River. Footbridges across Bright Angel Creek were destroyed, while large rocks, mud and damaged structures were swept downstream. Visitors to the areas were evacuated by helicopters, with 62 people taken from Phantom Ranch and the lower North Kaibab Trail the following morning. The National Park Service is also seeking information about more than 20 people who may be missing or unaccounted for. Phantom Ranch, Bright Angel Campground and the North Kaibab…
A fire broke out shortly after midnight at the plant and was extinguished within about two hours, thanks to rapid action by an employee and the fire service. No one was hurt, according to WB Electronics, but one small facility was damaged. The incident comes amid a range of suspected attacks targeting critical infrastructure linked to European military support for Ukraine, which Western authorities have increasingly attributed to Russia. Earlier this month, a drone carrying explosives was found near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig/Halle Airport, a hub for military supplies to Ukraine. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected to…
Published on 31/08/2026 – 18:52 GMT+2 Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar has said the European Union is facing a leadership crisis and needs to make crucial decisions about its future not only to survive, but to win. Magyar made the remarks at the Bled Strategic Forum, where he spoke alongside Slovenia’s Janez Janša, Croatia’s Andrej Plenković and Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš about regional cooperation and competitiveness. “There is a lack of political leadership, to be honest, in the European Union,” Magyar said, pointing to the EU’s bureaucracy, which he said stifled action. “I was told by a member of…
The annual Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit is gathering a diverse group of world leaders from 21 countries in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, as they pursue new alliances, ambitions and opportunities with the rise of regional powers in the rapidly evolving multipolar Eurasia. The two-day summit kicked off on Monday, focusing on political, economic and security engagements and cooperation, a long-promised development bank, connectivity, energy and trade routes strained by wars and conflicts, and the defining challenges of the Global South. The SCO’s 10 members — China, India, Pakistan, Russia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan — speak for more than…
Von der Leyen’s participation in the event has not been previously reported. The Commission president’s focus on space reflects mounting concern over Russian hybrid actions that appear to be taking aim at Europe’s reliance on satellites for everything from military communications to civilian navigation. GPS jamming and spoofing, for example, have surged recently around the Baltic Sea, disrupting thousands of flights, according to Sweden’s public broadcaster SVT. Von der Leyen herself got a taste of the potential risks last year when the private jet she was taking to Bulgaria experienced GPS interference. The space policy address also comes as von…
Prosecutors in Poland have launched a terrorism investigation into a fire at a drone factory in the city of Skarżysko-Kamienna. In a statement, prosecutors said the fire, which broke out at a WB Electronics factory, was started deliberately “by planting an explosive device containing flammable materials.” CCTV footage had reportedly captured an unidentified person in a balaclava who allegedly entered the premises after climbing a fence. A backpack and a sweatshirt were also found near the site. WB Electronics is the largest private arms company in Poland. Its reconnaissance and attack drones are used by the Ukrainian armed forces. Prosecutors…
Published on 31/08/2026 – 18:17 GMT+2 Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is seeking to reinstate the death penalty for arsonists following deadly wildfires that have ravaged parts of the country. Tebboune declared three days of national mourning on Thursday after wildfires in the northeast of the country killed at least 12 people and injured dozens more. In a statement, Tebboune described the loss of life as “a great tragedy,” as officials maintained the official death toll from Wednesday. Algeria has observed a moratorium on the death penalty since 1993, but the Algerian head of state has ordered that “an amendment to…